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Thursday, July 12, 2007

Campbell Dig a Window to Past

By Lee Ross
Mountain View Telegraph
    Anthropologist Mark Lycett can rattle off an astonishing number of details about the history and prehistory of the area around Paa-Ko.
    He did just that as he walked a small group through an archaeological site on Campbell Ranch on July 5. The walk was a preliminary tour before two planned public sessions to be held Friday and July 23.
    Also on hand was Rebecca Schwendler, cultural resources senior project manager for SWCA Environmental Consultants, who is organizing the public tours. Kim Jones and James Lindeman of Campbell Corp. were also there to listen.
    "Why we're here has a lot to do with what we want to know about the East Mountains," Lycett said before launching into a detailed history of the area.
    Lycett, a professor in the anthropology department at the University of Chicago, is the project director for the dig at Campbell Ranch.
    He has an almost unnaturally calm manner; his unhurried explanations are clear and hold great insight to the lives of Native Americans from the area from both prehistoric and colonial periods.
    As Lycett led the group around the area, he scanned the ground for pottery shards or flakes of rock that were used as tools. A weather-beaten wooden trowel handle stuck out of Lycett's back pocket.
    The group ducked through piñon and juniper branches as Lycett explained that, while it was occupied, the area would not have had trees.
    "They would have chopped down everything for fuel," he said.
    Many of the prehistoric sites at Campbell were likely used as windbreaks for workers, Lycett said. Some are outlines of rock walls on the ground and only about 5 to 6 feet on a side.
    According to Lycett, the workers would farm or ranch for the day and go back to the nearby Paa-Ko pueblo, which was occupied from the 1300s to 1600s.
    Thirty prehistoric sites and 15 historic archaeological sites have been found on Campbell Ranch, just across N.M. 14 from the Paa-Ko subdivision.
    He added that, when the corn started to come up and attract animals, the Native American people of the area would have probably used the opportunity to hunt for small game, like mice and rabbits.
    By the 1600s they also smelted copper and worked with lead and iron in this area, which Lycett said was a surprise.
    "It was always assumed that all the metal in New Mexico was brought from central Mexico," Lycett said.
    Over several centuries there were a number of surges in population in the area, dating back to the 1300s. The pattern of population and abandonment may be due, in part, to the hydrological cycles of the floodplain, Lycett said.
    He added that researchers can find out about the food that was grown in an area by studying soil samples at different depths.
    Researchers "cook" the soil, which usually has pollen in it. When only the hard outer shell of the pollen is left, researchers can use it to identify the plant life from the different periods of habitation.
    Schwendler created an information packet with a historical timeline for visitors to the area. The packet also has a few details from the area's prehistory, historical information and a few details about the archaeological process. It even includes information on the area's natural resources.
    In addition to providing the sites for Lycett's team to do research, Campbell Corp. is also paying SWCA for services such as creating the information packets and taking the public on tours of the site.
    When the dig is done, the corporation will also use some of the less significant pottery shards and rock artifacts to make a portable display case as an educational tool to tour around local schools.
    Campbell has budgeted approximately $60,000 for cultural resources, such as the dig and related expenses, and has spent $20,000 of that on this project to date, Jones said in a phone interview Monday.
    Tours of the site have been scheduled for Edgewood Parks and Recreation, East Mountain High School, Prince of Peace Lutheran School and Forest Service employees.
    Two of the tours, open to a limited number of visitors from the general public, are scheduled for Friday and July 23 from 10 a.m. to noon.
    For more information call Schwendler at 254-1115.